Vacuum fuel-feed device.



pews. VACUUM FUEL FEED DEVICE.

APPL ICATION FILED SEPT-10. 19H- 1, 2 swans-sum I Patented Sept. 3,1918.

L. BERG,

VACUUM FUEL FEED DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 10. 191 1.

' 1,277,684. Pate11tedSept.3,19l8.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

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LOUIS BERG, 0F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR T0 ETEWART-WARNER SPEEDOMETEBCORPORATION, OF CHICAGQ, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF VIRGINIA.

VACUUM FUEL-FEED DEVICE.

Application filed September 10, 1917. Serial K0. 190,678.

feeding device for controlling theialternm.

tion of domination of the suction and atmos 'lheric pressure in thevacuum chamber. it. consists in the elements and features ofconstruction shown and described, as indicated in the claims.

in the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a vacuum fuel feed deviceembodyin'g'this invention, having the wall of the vacuum chamber brokenaway to disclose the interior structure.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section axial with respect to the Rl-ll1OS]')ll6lGvalve stem and off the atmospheric pressure. When theupper buoyislitted, Withdrawing its hub, 24,

buoys.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, showing the operating parts in adifferent} position. in the drawings 1 represents the main low levelsupply tank for the liquid fuel. 2 is the vacuum chamber of the feeddevice located at a higher level. 3 is a conduit for 'eoi'uhu-ting' theliquid fuel from the tank,

1, to the vacuum chamber. 2. 4 is a reser volr or receptacle into whichthe liquid fuel is delivered by gravity from the vacuum chamber forsupplying the carburetor in the usual manner by gravity flow from saidreservoir, in the form shown in Fig. 1 there is provideda rigidlysupported vertical guide. 6. whose support is obtained by means of twoposts. 7. 7, upstanding from the. bottom plate. 8. of the vacuumchamber, and connected at their upper ends by a cross-bar. 9. from whichsaid vertical guide depends rigidly. ()n this guide there are mountedtwo buoys, '10 and 11. the lower buoy. 10, being quite small relativelyto the upper buoy, 11. and said lower buoy having rigidly connected toit at its lower side the valve, 12, for controlling the atmosphere inletport which is obtained through a nip ple, 14, screwed through the saidbottom plate, 8, and connected below said bottom plate with a pipe, 15,which extends along Specification of Letters Eatent.

Patented Sept. 3, 1918.

the under side of the bottom plate, and thence up at the. side of thevacuum chamber in the annularspace, 5, between the same and the outerWall, 16, of the reserfrom the central guide stem by a distancesufficient to admit between them when the outwardly-extending arms areat the lowest position, a hub-like projection, 24, which extends downfrom the lower side of the upper buoy, 11, and when'entered between saidtip-standing arms of the bell- .crank levers. locks them at the lowposition of their outwardly-extending arms and thereby locks the lowerbuoy at the correspending low position which is the closed or seatedposition of the valve, 12, cutting tar enough to withdraw the lowershoulder of said hub. 24, past the upper, point of the upstanding arms,21, of the bell-crank levers; The vacuum chamber is provided with asuction or exhaust connection shown at 26. and the liquid contentistransferred from said chamber, when the atmospheric pressure isadmitted, through a. short dis charge duct, 27, past the check valve,28,

in the familiar manner. Itis to be understood that, the reservoir, 4,within the annu lar space at. the upper part, thereof around the vacuumchamber, is at all times open to atmospheric pressure through a, tube,25,

which may conveniently be inserted through the-plate. 29. which forms.the top of the vacuum chamber through which the liquid fuel exhaustconnections are made.

The operation of the device may be. understood from the foregoingdescription, but may be furthermore particularly explained. ['Thevacuumchamber, 2, bein empty and connected through the suction tube, 26,with the engine manifold 'or'other source .of suction, the vacuum beingprodnced in said vacuum chamber causes the liquid to rise from thelow-level main supply tank 1, and, be discharged into said vacuumchamber through the pipe, 3. It will be observed that initially, thatis, when the vacuum chamber is empty, the lower buoy, 10, will be at itslowest position, holding the valve, 12, seated, and the atmosphericpressure excluded, and that the upper buoy will also be at the lowerposition with its between the upstanding arms of the bellcrank levers,and releasing them so that the lower buoy can rise, which it will doupon the instant that the lower shoulder of said hub passes the upperends of the bell-crank lever, thuscausing the atmosphere valve to remaincompletely closed until it is instantl and fully opened. The atmosphereinlet being quite large relatively to the suction port,

which is continuously open, atmospheric pressure will dominate over thesuction almost instantly upon the opening of the atmosphere inlet valveas described; and thereupon the liquid contents of the vacuum chamberwill escape therefrom by gravityast the valve, 28. As the liquid levelis owered in the vacuum chamber, the upper buoy ceasing to be upheld bythe liquid, would tend to fall, but cannot do so so long as the lowerbuoy remains upheld, holding the bell'crank levers with their upstandingarms engaged under the lower shoulder of the hub, 24;. No change in thevalve situa tion occurs, therefore, until the, liquid level has fallenso low as to permit the lower buoy to drop a sufficient distance towithdraw the upstandinglever arms from under said shoulder, whereuponinstantly the upper.

buoy falls',':thrustin its hub between the upstanding'arms of t elevers, and by virtue of the slight taper which that hub has as shown,spreads the upstanding lever arms, and thereby causesthe-outwardly-cxtending arms of the levers to force the lower buoy down,somewhat hastening itsdescent, andcausing. the closing of the atmosphereinlet valve to be substantially instantaneous,-and to occur when theliquid level in the vacuum chamber has fallen to a predetermined levelwhich is a level at which the-lower buoy is partly submer ed.

It will be c erve'dthat thestructure deaw/sea scribed, involving the twobuoys, and the locking devices coiiperating between them, producesdelayed action of the atmosphere valve both in opening and closing,until that action can be performed abruptly, thus performing thefunction of the familiar snap action, requiring more or less complicatedmechanism for its performance.

I claim '1. in combination with a main low level liquid fuel supplytank, an elevated vacuum chambery a conduit for liquid fuel from themain supply tank to the vacuum chamher; a valve adapted to be held onits seat by suction in the vacuum chamber,-and past which the liquid maybe discharged by grav: ity from said chamber, the vacuum chamber havinga suction or exhaust connection and an atmosphere inlet port; a valvecontrolling the atmosphere inlet port; an upper 'buoy and a lower buoyin the vacuum chain ber; means by which oneof said. buoys operates theatmosphere inlet valve, and means by which the other buoy locks thevalve against such operation in one direction.

2. In a construction such as set out in claim 1 foregoing, theatmosphere valve 'being operated by the lower buoy, and means by whichthe upper buoy locks the valve closed until said upper buoy rises.

3. In a construction such as set out in claim 1 foregoing, the valvebeing operated by the lower buoy, and locking devices car-. ried by theupper buoy for locking the lower buoy down until theupper float rises.

4. In a construction such as set out in claim 1 foregoing, the valvebeing operated by the lower buoy, and locking devices operativelyengaged with the lower buoy for I looking the upper buoy up until thelower buoy falls.

5. In a construction such as set out in claim 1, foregoing, theatmosphere valve being operated by the 'lower buo and looking devicesoperating between t e two floats for locking the upper buoy up until thelower buoy falls, and the lower buoy down until the upper float rises.

6. In a structure such as set out in claim 1, foregoing, a fixed guidefor the lower buoy, a bell-crank lever fulcrumed on said guide, havingan outwardly-extending arm engaged with the buoy, the upper buoy be- Img mounted and guided co-ax'ially with the lower buoy and provided atthe lower end with ashonlder under which the upstanding arm of the bellcrank lever is engaged by the upward movement of the lower buoy when theupper'buoy is raisechwhereby said upper buoy is held locked at elevatedposition.

7. in astructure such as set out in claim the atmosphere inlet portbeing at the bottom. of thervacuum chamber and a pi e leading therefromupwardly alOIlgSidQ-Sfitld.

chamber substantially to the high liquid valve rigid with it and theupper hnoy being free from the valve. I

' 8. In a structure such as set out in chum (S, foregoing a tapered hub0n the lower side Ofxlill'ilQPGr buoy Whose lower end constiiwlee theshoulder mentioned, said tapered nub being adapted for encounter by theup- 10 standing: lever arm and by its' said taper to wedge said leverarm in the direction for crowding the atmosphere valve to its sent.

Intestimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Chicago, Illinois,this 30th day 15 ot August, 1917.

LOUIS BERG.

